Dragon Ball FighterZ

Who knew it: Mixing one of the most famous animated licenses with the best fighting game developer turns out to be a good idea. Dragon Ball FIghterZ , from Arc System Workds, adapts brilliantly and a lot of rhythm the clashes between Dragon Ball teams in 2D and 3v3 fighting games, all supported by an accessible combo system and artistic direction in cel-shading faithful to the original work.

Despite the apparent chaos of the fights, the mechanics of Dragon Ball FighterZ ultimately prove to be simple and easy to learn. The game revolves around a four button attack system: light attack, medium attack, heavy attack, and special attack, the latter usually taking the form of a projectile. Special moves aren't associated with any complicated combinations, unlike Ryu's Shoryuken. If you know how to send a fireball in Street Fighter , you will be able to perform all the attacks in Dragon Ball FighterZ , bar none. A great system, especially since you have to fight with three characters at the same time.

This notion of simplicity goes a little too far when we dwell on the painful automatic combos of each fighter, to be executed by hammering several times the light and medium attack buttons. Add to that an attack that always hits the opponent and allows you to quickly get close to the opponent to place an automatic combo, and you have a system in which even the most basic tactics are effective. A player with skill, who masters the timing of heavy attacks, will still have a better chance of winning. However, this system shows its limits in certain situations, in particular when lag comes into play. During a fight against a player who spamming certain shots, small slowdowns are enough to be a source of frustration. But above all, it makes for some little fun clashes.

But as soon as you find yourself facing a player of the same level as you, Dragon Ball FighterZ gives rise to fast, fluid and strategic games! Arc System Works has created a combat system that is easy to learn, but difficult to master. But more importantly, it really feels like you're immersed in the Dragon Ball universe. There is nothing more satisfying, for a Dragon Ball fan, than being able to send your opponent high in the air, spin them all over the place, and end on a massive wave of destructive energy.

The roster, made up of 24 characters, is pretty awesome. Even some weird choices deserve their place in the game thanks to unique combat mechanics, such as Ginyu who can summon one of his gang members to perform a combo attack, or Nappa, able to crash. in the soil of the Saibaman who eventually grow up and take part in the fight. Arc System Works has also struck the right balance between easy-to-learn characters and fighting styles that are nuanced and deep enough for each warrior to have a distinct feel to the game.

Dragon Ball FighterZ's rather long and story- driven campaign revolves around an invasion of clones and a mysterious new character, the C-21 cyborg. The story mode starts well, but after 10 to 12 hours of play, I ended up dropping out. Blame it on a plot that lacks originality and rhythm. Killing clones between larger fights is not a very fun activity. So yes, you can level up your fighter and learn new abilities along the way, but the bonuses - health, defense or damage boosts, special attacks ... - are ultimately of little use during clashes. .

The fan-service assumed in the dialogues that precede each match is the only real reason to recommend this game to DBZ aficionados. Placing Gotenks and Ginyu on your team, for example, gives rise to a contest of improbable poses. If you pair Piccolo with Ten Shin Han, Gohan's master will try to convince his partner that he is a better grandfather than Goku. Not to mention the scenes in which Yamcha intervenes and does not manage to hide his bitterness towards his status as the weakest character in the game - if one relies on the work of Akira Toriyama of course. Chasing these many cult or funny moments is undeniably one of the strengths of Story mode.

If competing against an AI is your cup of tea, the uniquely constructed Arcade Mode is for you. As you fight - at the controls of a predefined selection of fighters, the game prompts you, after each head-to-head won, to choose one of three different routes (up, middle or down). There are no real differences between each route. Only the difficulty and the opponents change. In any case, expect to bite the dust if you opt for the high road each time - a challenge that undoubtedly pushes you to surpass yourself. Among the weak points of this mode, we will mention the impossibility of restarting a match that started badly, and a sometimes too large difference in difficulty between two matches.

One of the cutest parts of Dragon Ball FighterZ is in the lobby, where your avatar, modeled in chibi style, can communicate with other players through funny emotes and stickers, inspired by most emblematic moments of the cartoon and to collect in chests. If generally, loot boxes bristle, this is not the case in Dragon Ball FighterZ . The game is indeed very generous with its virtual currency. After completing the campaign, doing a few fights in Arcade mode, and completing challenges, I had already unlocked tons of stickers, as many titles, and seven avatars in total, all without spending a single dollar.

As for multiplayer, my experience is rather mixed. There were times when the meetings were so fluid that I felt like playing locally with a friend. Then there were times when it was the festival of lag, each of my games ending with a disconnect. Hoping that Arc System Works is working on the stability of its servers.

The options for single player are certainly not lacking, with a full-bodied story mode divided into three acts, an arcade structured with crossroads that rewards our performances, and the classic versus, to be set also in the form of an elimination tournament, all in local than on the network, but also against the CPU. With the virtual currency of the game, the Zenni, you can buy capsules that contain aesthetic elements to enrich your online profile and expand the colors of the fighters: no purchase with real money, therefore, at least for the moment.

Dragon Ball FighterZ is presented as a classic team fighting game, with three fighters on each side, super moves on the fly and substitutions on the battlefield. The watchword is speed, and at first it will be difficult to keep under control the incessant action of the clashes. Before delving into the different game modes, I am particularly concerned with analyzing the combat system, whose immediacy can prove to be, in the short and medium term, a double-edged sword. Set on a two-dimensional structure, the title requires a not-indifferent promptness of reflexes, with which to read the excited action present on the screen without being overwhelmed by the countless (and inevitable) combos of the enemy.